Slow Cooker Rotisserie-Style Beer Can Chicken

Who hasn’t stopped by the grocery store on their way home and picked up a rotisserie chicken? We’ve all done it. We aren’t denying it’s an easy solution if you’re pressed for time or want an easy, pre-cooked protein to use in meals throughout the week – but have you tried cooking a rotisserie-style chicken in your slow cooker? You can control the seasonings and have a whole chicken for you waiting when you get home with just a little prep in the morning.

For this slow cooker rotisserie-style chicken we wanted to play off of a popular summer dish – Beer Can Chicken. You’ve probably seen pictures of whole chickens propped up on a can of beer on the grill, or have maybe even attempted cooking one yourself. We took that idea but transferred it to the slow cooker so you can enjoy the same flavors year round.

The trick to making a rotisserie-style chicken in the slow cooker is aluminum foil. Place four aluminum foil balls on the bottom of the slow cooker crock and then pour in a can of beer of your choice. The foil will lift the chicken out of the liquid so it steams in the beer leaving you with tender, moist meat.

We rubbed the chicken with a mixture of smoked paprika, salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, and garlic powder. The paprika gives the chicken skin a deep red color and adds a smoky flavor.

Take rotisserie-style beer can chicken to your next neighborhood barbecue (it’s best served alongside friends, beer, and sunshine) or make it on Sunday for dinner and eat the leftovers throughout the week on sandwiches and salads.

Place 4 balls of aluminum foil on bottom of slow cooker crock. Pour beer into crock.

Rinse chicken and pat dry.

Rub chicken with seasoning mixture. Place chicken on top of foil in crock.

Cover slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for 3 hours or LOW for 5 to 7 hours. Chicken is well done when meat temperature registers 165°F in the breast or 175°F-180°F in the thickest part of the thigh.

Notes

USDA recommends 165°F as the safe eating temperature for chicken. Chicken is done when meat temperature registers 165°F in the breast or 175°F-180°F in the thickest part of the thigh. For more information on food safety, visit foodsafety.gov.

Excellent recipe, with a couple caveats. Has anyone ever seen a 6 lb chicken for sale anywhere? Regardless, instead of foil balls, how about potatoes, celery, carrots, onions to keep the chicken above the bottom? Also beer in America does not commonly come in 16 oz cans. A 12 oz Guinness will do nicely. Thanks for the recipe, My grandmother did this, my mother and myself for many years and it is excellent.

Just made this overnight. Yes! Beer can chicken for breakfast. I need to work on this. Found a 2″ tall rack from Amazon that raised the chicken to the perfect height. Never got soggy. Few problems. Had 5-1/2 lb. chicken. Gave it 6 hrs. Hit 190F. Tried taking it out of Slow Cooker, totally fell apart. Have to cut back the time next time. Any ideas how to get it out in one piece so I can broil it? I added more spices, but the chicken itself is still bland. How can I get more flavor into the meat? Brining?

Season the inside cavity walls of the chicken as well. Also season under the skin not on top. Large hands can make this difficult but basically lift the edge of the skin, and rub the meat of the chicken with the spices instead of the skin. Avoid tearing the skin and completely separating it from the chicken (this is where small hands come in handy) you can also do this on the legs and tighter areas by using just two fingers to get under the skin.

Many questions here. Let me add this to help. The beer really just adds to the moisture effect and allows you to say its “beer” chicken. So don’t take it so literally. You can supplement the beer with other beverages because the chicken NEVER touches the meat. Toss some good chicken seasonings on the meat because this is what you’ll be tasting. DON’T toss out the skin… Once the chicken is finished, through it under the broiler to quickly crisp up the skin (tasty). I’m serving mine with some creamed spinach and garlic toast. Don’t over complicate this. I even used a large pot on the stove with lid, instead of a traditional slow cooker or crockpot. SAME EFFECT, Great Chicken. Oh and yeah, there was a chicken sale on at my local grocer 2 whole chickens/$12. Invest in a meat thermometer.

I see a lot of mixed reviews from disappointing and soggy skin to delicious moist chicken. Is it fair to say that the meat comes out tender and delicious but discard the skin when it’s done to get rid of any disappointment? This recipe looks really good and I want to try it but don’t want to waste $14 either. Idea…do what the recipe says and when it’s done, maybe through it in the oven for twenty minutes to crisp up the skin but not dry out the chicken at the same time? Thoughts?????

Throw the chicken under the broiler for 2 to 4 minutes on each side and watch it carefully. This crisps the skin nicely. The slow cooker method makes the meat very tender but will do the same to the skin. Don’t be like the stupid people in this thread that do not understand how a crock pot works.

I made this yesterday, and found it disappointing. The skin was kind of a soggy mess with the seasonings on it. I could have crisped up the chicken in the oven, but then why have I wasted time and energy with the crockpot? The chicken was tender and fairly moist, but I didn’t feel that the beer really added anything to the flavor. Next time I will roast my chicken in a conventional oven.

Is it the fact that you are afraid the beer might intoxicate you, because it won’t, or that the booze might be a trigger for you? If the former, I’d do an O’Douls or any NA beer. dark NA beer would be better, or try some fruity juice or complex sodas, like Dr. Pepper or Coke. The fun of cooking is that you can tinker with any recipe to suit your situation and make it your own!

Hi Karen, you can use fryer chickens. I can’t tell you a time not knowing the weight of the fryer(s). I would start checking the chicken(s) 1 hour before the time in the recipe depending if you have 1 or 2 fryers in the slow cooker. For best results in a slow cooker, fill the crock no more than 1-inch from the lid.